20 Most Epic Wrestling Matches That Weren't Supposed To Be Epic
12. Mark Henry vs. Big Show (Vengeance 2011)
There are but a few times in your wrestling fandom when a matchs quality will so thoroughly blow your mind that you sit wondering aloud afterward, How was that so good? Batista vs. Undertaker at WrestleMania 23 springs to mind as an example. The Animal never gave much reason to expect he could steal the show on the grand stage, but he arguably did. Mark Henry had a greater number of years to put together his sample size of reasons not to expect show-stealing performances, but in 2011 something clicked in his mind that wrestling fans had waited 15 years to witness. All of a sudden, Henry turned the corner and became a serviceable worker. Even still, serviceable gave no reason to expect greatness. At Money in the Bank 2011, Henry faced Big Show in a glorified squash match that put the 7-footer on the shelf for a few months. When Show returned, he made (by then) World Champion, Henry, his primary target. No reasonable fan could have seen Show vs. Henry on the marquee and assumed anything more than an above average match. Yet, they stepped into the ring at Vengeance and found magic within themselves. 11-minutes later, the ring was broken for only the second time in televised WWE history and the fans were in awe not just of the spectacle of the climax, but of the entire match that had led to it.
"The Doc" Chad Matthews has written wrestling columns for over a decade. A physician by trade, Matthews began writing about wrestling as a hobby, but it became a passion. After 30 years as a wrestling fan, "The Doc" gives an unmatched analytical perspective on pro wrestling in the modern era. He is a long-time columnist for Lordsofpain.net and hosts a weekly podcast on the LOP Radio Network called "The Doc Says." His first book - The WrestleMania Era: The Book of Sports Entertainment - ranks the Top 90 wrestlers from 1983 to present day, was originally published in December 2013, and is now in its third edition.
Matthews lives in North Carolina with his wife, two kids, and two dogs.
